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12 March 2007

Parkerized Pinotage?

Robert Parker is reputed to love the style of wines made by Michel Rolland. What Parker loves he awards big scores to. High Parker scores sell wines and their price soars thus wineries around the world engage Rolland as a wine making consultant in order to make 'Parker' wines. Rolland’s reputation is built on Bordeaux varieties but if you want to know what a Parkerized Pinotage tastes like, mosey along to Marianne Estate, just south of Paarl on the R44.

Michel Rolland is a friend of M. Dauriac, who owns Marianne in addition to estates in Bordeaux, and Rolland enjoys staying in the farm’s luxury guest houses.

Marianne wines include Merlot, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc, two Bordeaux blends and well as Pinotage, all of which I tasted. The wine I thought best, though was their 2004 Chenin Blanc. Unfortunately this is the only vintage since the vines have sadly been replaced.

Wines are differentiated by the colour used on the labels, which bear a stylised image of Marianne, the iconic French revolutionary symbol

Alone of the red wines, the Pinotage is fermented in stainless steel. 2004 was their first bottling, and the only Pinotage currently available but I was also able to taste the 2005 and 2006 from barrel.

The 2004 (68R = 9.25USD/4.75GBP) Pinotage has a dense garnet very young looking but not particularly clear colour and a floral lavender nose. I found it had a strange finish -- sharp volatile stewed, almost burnt. I noted it was ‘interesting’ but I did not like this wine.

Much more to my taste was the 2005, back in tank prior to bottling after barrel ageing in old oak. It has good fruit, depth and soft tannins.

And the 2006, which was in its tenth month in old oak barrels, was also very approachable. Good berry fruits and structure, some grip on finish. I’d like to taste this wine once it is bottled.

For me, there was a very steep improvement over the three vintages, and this farm is definitely one to watch as its 8-15 year old Pinotage vines mature and Rolland gets to grip with Pinotage.

Many thanks to Franck Malassigne of Marianne for the tasting, and to Jeanette Stals for making the arrangements.

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About Me

Peter F May is the founder of The Pinotage Club, an international cyber-based fan club for wines made from the Pinotage variety.
Peter was awarded Honorary Membership of the producers Pinotage Association in 2004 and was a judge at the annual Pinotage Top 10 Competition in 2004 and 2005.
Peter is a wine writer, educator and author. His book PINOTAGE: Behind the Legends of South Africa's Own Wine may ordered below and from Amazon.
Marilyn Merlot and the Naked Grape - odd wines from around the world was published in summer 2006.
Peter answers all polite emails - contact him at peter (at) pinotage (dot) org .

A I Perold's
A Treatise
on Viticulture
A I Perold (1880-1941) was South Africa's first Professor of Viticulture and Oenology. He dedicated himself to improving the quality of grapes for wine, brandy and the table. He studied wine and brandy production in Europe, imported more than 60 varieties to the Cape and bred new ones. Perold said this book “is intended to serve both the student and the practical grape-grower. There are in it technical passages that will appeal more to the student, e.g. the chapters dealing with the biology of the vine, its external and internal morphology, the theory of grafting. My remarks on the practice of viticulture, such as those dealing with the propagation, manuring and pruning of the vine, the production of table grapes for export, will, it is hoped, assist the practical grape-grower as well as the student.” This is a newly typeset reprint, not a photocopy. Text on the 712 pages have been aligned to match the original pagination so any external references to pages in the Treatise will be valid in this edition
Available in paperback and hardback editions. 712 pages